Colorado ski visits down 11.4%

Colorado Ski Country USA (CSCUSA), the state ski industry lobbying group that represents 22 resorts, reported at its annual meeting in Boulder today that its 22 member resorts hosted an estimated 6.16 million skier visits during the 2011-12 ski season. This represents a decrease of 11.4 percent, or approximately 790,000 skier visits, compared to last season, which was the fourth best season on record. Compared to the five year average, CSCUSA member resort skier visits are down 11.9 percent. The overall snow related decline interrupted the recovery resorts had been building since 2008/09.
In an indication of the extreme weather impacting Colorado resorts this season, Colorado’s western slope experienced its third driest and seventh warmest winter in records going back to 1895. Precipitation on the Western Slope this winter was 43 percent below average, and down every month of the winter. In Colorado overall, March 2012 was the driest in more than 100 years, and we experienced the second warmest March on record. President and CEO of Colorado Ski Country USA Melanie Mills said: "Much of the ski industry in the US was confronted with weather challenges last year, but several of our resorts bucked the national trend and showed signs of resilience during what was clearly an uninspiring winter".
The diversity of ski resorts in Colorado saw some areas post increases and even records in visitation. Colorado Ski Country resorts also saw strength in both domestic and international destination visitors which helped soften the economic impacts to resort operators and resort communities of the overall decline in visitation.
Momentum going into the season was strong after seeing an uptick in visitation last year, and economic conditions generally improved during the season. Abundant amounts of snow came in the fall, allowing some resorts to open earlier than planned, but the uncharacteristic precipitation deficit brought that momentum to a standstill. Snow came in the middle of the season and several resorts broke single day snowfall totals, but perception of an underperforming winter was already set in skiers’ minds. "We’ve had dry years in the past, and we’ll have dry years again", Mills explained. "Not every year can be a record breaking year, and with nary a snowflake in what is normally our snowiest month in Colorado, season visitation numbers are disappointing, but not unexpected".
CSCUSA resorts upheld their dedication to providing guests with a quality product and superior service which sets Colorado apart from other ski destinations, and keeps the state’s appeal as the premiere place for winter travelers. "Our resorts have so much to offer visitors that in some cases the world class skiing is just one of a menu of activities. And for many people, the season was more about being outside and spending time with friends and family taking in the beautiful outdoors and wonderful amenities of our resorts".
With certain assumptions in place, statewide skier visits for Colorado are estimated at 11,010,584 million. This estimation shows Colorado being down 9.8 percent, or approximately 1,195,000 visits, compared to last season. On a national level, skier visits overall are down 15.7 percent with the Rocky Mountain region seeing a decrease of 7.2 percent.
These numbers are preliminary results and subject to final adjustments by CSCUSA members. The decision to release individual numbers is up to each individual resort.
The 2010-11 ski season was the fourth best ever after record snowfall at most Colorado resorts. The 2011-12 season saw record low snowfall totals as a major snow drought gripped most of the state and the nation.
Skier visits for the past 10 years can be downloaded here.

Vail Resorts Reports Third Quarter Results

Vail Resorts reported results for the third quarter of fiscal 2012 ended April 30, 2012 and the results of its spring pass sales for the 2012/2013 ski season.
Vail Resorts ski areas experienced historically low snowfall (with cumulative snowfall at our six resorts (excluding Kirkwood) down more than 50% over the prior ski season) and one of the mildest winters on record, including over the key spring break and Easter periods, which adversely impacted our skier visitation which was down 9.8% (with our Colorado and Tahoe resorts down 9.0% and 12.4%, respectively) for the three months ended April 30, 2012 compared to the same period in the prior year.  Despite these unprecedented conditions, revenues were generally stabilized by increased season pass sales, higher pricing and increased average guest spend.
Lift ticket revenue increased by 0.7% over the prior year and ancillary revenue from ski school and retail/rental was up 1.1% and 1.3%, respectively, while dining revenue was down 1.1% driving an 11.6% increase in total ancillary revenue per skier visit.
Total Mountain net revenue increased by 0.9% over the prior year with a 9.8% decline in skier visits more than offset by a 12.8% increase in season pass revenue and a 9.4% increase in Effective Ticket Price (“ETP”) excluding season pass holders.
Mountain Reported EBITDA increased 0.6% and Resort Reported EBITDA (which includes the Company’s Mountain and Lodging segments) decreased by 0.5% from the prior year.
Commenting on the Company’s fiscal 2012 third quarter results, Rob Katz, Chief Executive Officer said, "We are pleased with our third quarter results as they evidenced our ability to successfully navigate the most challenging winter in the history of the United States ski industry. Cumulative snowfall levels for the 2011/2012 ski season were down more than 50% across our resorts, compared with the prior year, and snowfall at our Colorado resorts was down more than 70% in March. The lack of snow, combined with unseasonable temperatures, affected visitation levels during the key spring break and Easter vacation periods. Yet, despite these unprecedented conditions, we delivered an approximate 1% increase in Mountain Reported EBITDA in the third quarter compared with the prior year. This performance demonstrates the stability and resiliency of our business model, which benefitted from our growing season pass business, as well as the quality of our resorts and the breadth of the experience we offer, which attracted guests throughout the season".
Continuing on the third quarter performance, Katz added "There were several positive indicators in the third quarter that contributed to our performance and bode well as we look toward the 2012/2013 ski season. Our Mountain net revenue increased 0.9% to $354.6 million as higher spending per skier visit, improved lift ticket pricing and strong season pass revenue more than offset the decline in skier visits. Lift ticket revenue increased 0.7% during the quarter despite a drop of 9.8% in visitation benefitting from a 12.8% increase in season pass revenue and a 9.4% gain in ETP, excluding season pass holders. On a per visit basis, our ski school revenue per visit increased 12.1%, dining revenue per visit was higher by 9.7% and retail/rental revenue per visit was up 12.3%, reflecting the high income demographic of our resort guests enabling us to benefit from enhanced consumer spending, especially in the luxury segment, as well as from our international guests. Over the course of the 2011/2012 ski season, our international visitation increased by approximately 2%, despite a 12.1% decline in total visitation and continued challenges in the European economy, reflecting targeted marketing efforts to drive more visits from this growing international segment. For the full 2011/2012 ski season, visitation at our Tahoe resorts declined 22.4% compared to the prior year, while our Colorado resorts were down 8.9% with Beaver Creek essentially flat reflecting its higher mix of luxury and destination guests. Our season passholders, representing arguably our most weather sensitive guests, skied only approximately one day less, on average, in the current ski season compared to the prior year. Overall season pass revenue represented approximately 40% of our total lift ticket revenue for the winter season. Also during the third quarter we leveraged our strong balance sheet, acquiring a third Tahoe resort, Kirkwood, with early indications that this unique resort should prove to be highly complementary to our existing portfolio and pass programs. Finally, I could not be more pleased to report that total spring season pass sales, which include sales through Tuesday May 29, 2012 compared to sales through Tuesday May 31, 2011 and including Kirkwood pass sales in both years, were up approximately 17% in units and approximately 22% in sales dollars. These sales, which will be recorded as revenue in the second and third quarters of fiscal 2013, provide perhaps the strongest indicator we have seen for the upcoming 2012/2013 ski season".
Vail Resorts is the leading mountain resort operator in the United States. Vail Resorts operate the mountain resorts of Vail, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge and Keystone in Colorado, and Heavenly, Northstar and Kirkwood in the Lake Tahoe area of California and Nevada, and the GrandTeton Lodge Company in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. The Company's subsidiary, RockResorts, a luxury resorthotel company, manages casually elegant properties. Vail Resorts Development Company is the real estateplanning, development and construction subsidiary of Vail Resorts, Inc. Vail Resorts is a publicly heldcompany traded on the New York Stock Exchange.

Utah Ski and Snowboard Industry Announces 2011-12 Skier Day Visits

The Utah ski and snowboard industry announced 3,802,536 million skier day visits during the 2011-12 winter season, down 10 percent from the previous season’s 4,223,064. The 2010-11 season was Utah’s second best season on record only a hair short from the 2007-08 season, which recorded 4,249,190 skier days.
Low snow totals plaguing resorts nationwide and the persistence of a wavering economy are credited for the decrease at Utah ski and snowboard resorts this season. As snow totals have accumulated well above the state’s 500 annual inch average the past four seasons, this year’s below average snowfall was all the more difficult for powder lovers to endure. Despite the downturn, Ski Utah is confident awareness and demand for the Utah wintersport product is headed on a positive trajectory. Utah skier day visits performed quite well in comparison to the national average down 15% from last season according to the National Ski Area Association.
"Utah ski and snowboard resorts did an exceptional job compensating for the lack of early season snow with a record level of snowmaking", noted Ski Utah President Nathan Rafferty. "Unfortunately, by the time Mother Nature joined the effort many consumers had already turned their attention away from skiing and snowboarding".
Ski Utah also observed that while participation in on-snow activities declined this season many complementary businesses, such as restaurants and shops, reported steady to strong business indicating many visitors supplemented their vacations with other activities.
For a complete history of Utah’s skier days visit http://www.skiutah.com/media/story_starters/utah-skier-days-table.
Ski Utah is the marketing firm owned and operated by the 14 statewide ski resorts that make up the Utah Ski and Snowboard Association (Alta Ski Area, Beaver Mountain, Brian Head Resort, Brighton Resort, Canyons Resort, Deer Valley Resort, Eagle Point, Park City Mountain Resort, Powder Mountain Resort, Snowbasin Resort, Snowbird Ski and Summer Resort, Solitude Mountain Resort, Sundance and Wolf Mountain). The organization has been creating brand awareness of and demand for the Utah wintersports product since its inception in 1978.

Where To Ski or Board In June?

Alps. Although the choice of ski areas open in the Alps at the start of June is limited to just four areas – the Dachstein (which currently has a base of more than 4.5m) and Hintertux glaciers in Austria, Zermatt in Switzerland and Passo Stelvio in Italy; that will all change in a few weeks’ time when half a dozen more areas are scheduled to open for summer skiing and snowboarding. These include French resorts Les 2 Alpes, Tignes (both opening on June 16th) and Val d’Isere - which opens first on June 9th. In Italy Val Senales and Cervinia re-open on the 16th and 20th June respectively. Summer skiing in the Alps mostly takes place between 7am and 1pm daily.

Scandinavia. In Scandinavia the three Norwegian summer ski areas of Folgefonn, Galdhoppigen and Stryn are all reporting huge bases of over 8m. Ruka in Finland still has it’s ‘summer’ slope open that helps it stay open for 8 months each (normal) ‘season’ from mid-October to mid-June. This year it plans to keep the slope open to June 10th.

North America. In North America there’s no repeat of last year’s snowy-late-spring and even stalwarts like Mammoth have closed ‘already.’ However Timberline in Oregon, the only year-round snowfield is open in the USA, as is Crystal Mountain in Washington state, “We will remain open for skiing June 2-3 and 9-10, possibly longer if conditions allow,” they say. North of the border all ski areas in Canada are currently closed but Whistler Blackcomb re-opens for glacier skiing on June 23rd and remains open to July 29th. There was over 2.1m (7 feet) of snow lying there on the 1st of June.

Southern Hemisphere. In the southern hemisphere Perisher in Australia will be the first resort to open, this Saturday, 2nd June, a week earlier than planned, thanks to 30cm of fresh snow plus snowmaking. Other Australian resorts are expected to follow as scheduled a week later. These include Mt Buller which will open the country’s only new chairlift this winter, a quad chair.
There have also been promising signs in New Zealand where opening was delayed last year by record warm months of May and June 2011, this year there have been re-assuring pre-season snowfalls and most resorts expect to open between June 9th and June 23rd with Coronet Peak and Mt Hutt among the first expecting to open.
Across the Pacific resorts across South America should also be opening for their 2012 winter in the next few weeks and again the signs are good with pre-season snow accumulations. New lifts include a quad chair for Las Lenas in Argentina and the first gondola in Chile at Valle Nevado.
Finally in Africa, Afri-ski in Lesotho, the only commercial snowfield in the south of the continent and the southern hemisphere has been snowmaking in recent cold temperatures and is on target to open on June 6th, next week.

St. Moritz To Host 2017 Alpine World Ski Championships

St Moritz was announced the successful bidder of the three European resorts competing to host the 2017 Alpine World Ski Championships.
St Moritz has hosted the Championships on four previous occasions since first staging them in 1934 and had been a contender for the next two Championships, which will be staged in Schladming, Austria, next winter and in Beaver Creek / Vail in Colorado in 2015. St Moritz last staged the Championships in 2003.
The decision was made by the FIS Council on Thursday at the 48th International Ski Congress in Kangwonland, Korea. St Moritz received 12 votes to achieve an absolute majority in the first ballot against Are in Sweden, the only other remaining candidate following the dramatic last minute withdrawal from the process by Italy’s Cortina d'Ampezzo.
"The step taken was not an easy one, but in difficult moments it is crucial being strong, determined and showing courage. Following the unwritten rule of rotating the FIS events between its member federations, we realised that it is not Cortina’s turn this time around", commented Italian Ski Federation President, Flavio Roda.
"Withdrawing the bid also means having plenty of time to present our UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2019 in its best shape. Especially, we would like to highlight our work regarding new ski lifts connecting the valleys of the Dolomites and, thus, creating real legacies".
In addition to St Moritz’s success, Kulm (Austria) and Sierra Nevada (Spain) were unanimously elected as hosts of the 2016 FIS Ski Flying World Championships and joint FIS Freestyle Ski & Snowboard World Championships 2017, respectively.

The Nordic World Ski Championships will be hosted by Lahti (Finland), which took this honour in the third ballot with 12 votes ahead of Planica (SLO).

.ski Website Name Extension Announced

A company called Starting Dot has announced it has applied to be the official registry of .ski (Dot Ski) as part of a program initiated by the Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers (ICANN) launched in 2012 to create a new generation of website address (URL) extensions.

"The Starting Dot mission is to bring new online opportunities to ski sports communities, participants, business owners and brands through a dedicated top level domain name extension that ends with the .ski extension. (e.g. www.alpine.ski)", said a media statement from the company, which continues, "Through the successful management of .ski, Starting Dot will create new opportunities in the ever-expanding global ski sports industry and provide trusted and safe internet spaces for people passionate about ski sports".

The value of a dedicated .ski Top Level Domain space for the ski sports community is underpinned by support from a growing number of official endorsements. These include, SNTF - Ski Areas of France (an association composed by over 230 French mountain operators), the General Counsel of Savoy, the resort of Tignes and Olympic Gold Medalist Antoine Deneriaz.
Ski sports community will be able to begin securing .ski domain name extension in early 2013 and can stay up to date with the latest news from .ski at www.dot-ski.com.
Founded in October 2011 in Paris, Starting Dot is developing a portfolio of 5 new Top Level Domain names (TLDs) dedicated to major online industries: .SKI, .IMMO, .DESIGN, .ARCHI and .BIO. Starting Dot aims to help online businesses more distinctively express their purpose in their online brands and reach deeper into their consumer and business audiences. StartingDot's strategy is to focus on TLDs dedicated to SME categories for which a direct correlation between their trade and their domain name is of the utmost importance.

Valle Nevado and Mammoth Mountain Announce Partnership

Valle Nevado (Chile) and Mammoth Mountain (USA, California) announced a new sister resort partnership effective May 2012. Valle Nevado, located 90 minutes from Santiago, and Mammoth Mountain, located in Central California, are two of the largest and most popular resorts in their respective countries, and an alliance between the two will provide customers and season pass holders with unique cross-promotional benefits and greater awareness of each resort, opening an opportunity for skiers and snowboarders to live the legend of the endless winter.
To celebrate Valle Nevado and Mammoth Mountain’s new partnership, season pass holders at each resort will receive 7-Day free lift tickets at the sister resort. Valle Nevado and Mammoth Mountain expect to see many future benefits for customers that will include lodging discounts and other added-value services. Free days can be issued per day, one at a time, and don’t need to be consecutive. There are no blackout dates to use the free days in Valle Nevado. Free days can be redeemed anytime during the 2012 Chilean ski season.
"Valle Nevado sees the partnership with Mammoth Mountain as a perfect fit", says Valle Nevado Sales & Marketing Director Ricardo Almeida. "Both resorts adhere to a visionary philosophy that siezes opportunities to modernize on-mountain and base facilities, provide outstanding customer service, and offer a tremendous amount of world-class terrain. But most importantly, it gives skiers on both hemispheres a chance to enjoy the unparalled experience of summer skiing".
Valle Nevado is also working with closely with Mammoth Mountain’s Unbound Terrain Park to put together unique cross activities such as training camps, team photo shoots, and the Unbound South America Session that will be announced in the near future.